The Dynasty that was supposed to end Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro continues.
The curtain that was supposed to drop on the New England Patriots remarkable run through the 21stcentury National Football League didn’t.
The team that was supposed to walk off the field with a ticket to the AFC Championship next week left empty-handed.
Instead, the Los Angeles Chargers are back on the West Coast, and Bill Belichick, Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and the rest of the Patriots are preparing to fly to Kansas City for their eighth consecutive AFC Championship appearance and a chance to play in their ninth Super Bowl since the turn of the century.
The Patriots, good but not great this season, crushed the Chargers, 41-28, in a mismatch that was over at the half. The Patriots scored on their first four possessions and led 35-7 at intermission. They had more first downs in the first 30 minutes, 24, than the Chargers had plays, 23. They gained more yards in the first half, 347, than the Chargers did in the game, 335.
This, sports fans, was DOMINATION. Go figure.
The Chargers came to town with a well-earned swagger. Their 12-4 regular-season record was better than New England’s 11-5. They had won seven of their eight road games. They had nine Pro Bowl players and three first-team All-Pros. They had a veteran quarterback with a rating almost as good as TB12’s. And they had already won a playoff game at Baltimore.
The Patriots? They won their 10thconsecutive AFC East title mostly because the AFC East is so bad. Belichick showed signs of not being the genius he has been since 2000. The Malcolm Butler case from Super Bowl LII remains a mystery.
But Belichick demonstrated even before the opening kickoff that this day would be different. When the Patriots won the toss, he reversed his usual course and took the ball. His offense responded with 14-play, 83-yard drive for Sony Michel’s first touchdown, a plunge from the 1. The march consumed 7 minutes and 11 seconds. That was only the beginning.
Just a year removed from an MVP campaign at the age of 40, this season Brady finally showed signs of getting old. His throws were slightly off, his grip on the game not quite so tight. ESPN rated him sixth overall in the league. He had 4,355 passing yards with 29 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. All the avocado ice cream in the world couldn’t change the fact that he was playing like the 41-year-old he is. He’s an ancient in the world of professional sports.
So, all Brady did was complete 34 of 44 passes for 343 yards and a touchdown. He did not throw an interception. The offensive line protected him to the tune of two hits and no sacks. Amazing!
This season, Rob Gronkowski was no longer the formidable tight end, the automatic reception over the middle, the brute always good for 6 or 8 or 10 yards after the catch. He played like a battered veteran, a victim of too many hits, too many injuries, too many surgeries. He caught only one pass Sunday, but his blocking helped the Pats rush for 155 yards. Impressive!
This season, the wide receiver position was so thin that running back James White was the team’s leading pass catcher with 87 for 751 yards and 7 touchdowns. The running game was good, not great. Michel, a rookie, rushed for 931 yards and 6 touchdowns. The Patriots won’t win a playoff game without a deep threat or on running alone, doubters agreed.
So, White caught 15 passes, breaking the New England record and tying the NFL playoff record, for 97 yards. Julian Edelman grabbed nine balls for 151 yards. Michel rushed 24 times for 129 yards and three touchdowns. Stunning!
This season, the defense was no longer a force. On the final play of the Miami game last month, a 69-yard hook-and-ladder for the Dolphins winning touchdown as time expired, the Pats defense was a farce.
So, all the defense did was hold the Chargers to 19 yards rushing, recover a fumble, intercept a pass and sack Philip Rivers twice for a loss of 15 yards. The dangerous Melvin Gordon rushed nine times for 15 yards and caught one pass for 11 yards. Unbelievable!
For two weeks after the Patriots defeated the Jets on Dec. 30 and earned another first-round playoff bye, they no doubt saw reports and heard talk jocks predicting their demise. The talk had merit, but those of us scribbling and yapping about a downfall forgot something. The Patriots do not lose at home. Not this season, anyway. Sunday was their ninth game at Gillette, and they won all nine. It’s rare when they do lose. Since 2000 they are 20-3 at home in the playoffs.
On the road it’s a different story. The Pats are 2-4 in the playoffs since 2000. They are 3-5 this season. But based on their play Sunday, woe to those who count them out. Remember, the Chargers beat the Chiefs in Kansas City, 54-51, on a Monday night in November.
The end of The Dynasty? The Final Curtain? No Super Bowl LIII? We should have learned this much on Sunday: Don’t be so sure.
